Dr Kewley attended this conference. About 3,000 professionals from all over the world were present. Very significant changes were noted from the first such conference that was held four years ago. There has been so much increased recognition of the validity and reality of ADHD and its importance in service development such that such large numbers of professionals were attracted to attend the conference. Whilst much of the conference was consolidation of previously well-known information, there were particularly interesting talks on the increased evidence of the genetic underpinnings of ADHD, on the fact that a proportion of people with ADHD end up in trouble with the youth justice system, the increased recognition that there is a subgroup of people with ADHD who have exceptional problems with emotional volatility and mood instability, and the number of presentations and the effectiveness and safety of medical treatment for ADHD endorsing that it was seen as being part of appropriate management.
There were very good networking opportunities available and also more than 500 poster presentations about ADHD from a wide range of countries. The conference was highly successful and the next conference will be held in Italy in two years’ time.
